Wednesday, 12 February 2014

Judy Davis quit 24: LIVE ANOTHER DAY last week, but it's now been revealed the Australian actress has been replaced by Michelle Fairley (Catelyn Stark in Game of Thrones, above-right). She will now play Margo, the British widow of an infamous terrorist, and I'm sure she'll do a fantastic job. [via EW]

ITV have commissioned a new serial killer crime drama called CHASING SHADOWS, which feels like a direct replacement for Whitechapel in some respects. It even has a role for a League of Gentlemen actor –- one Reece Shearsmith (Psychoville, Inside No9), who takes the lead as DS Sean Stone; a socially-awkward misfit working for the missing persons field unit, charged with tracking down serial killers. He's joined by Doctor Who alumni Alex Kingston and Noel Clarke as Ruth Hattersley and DI Prior, respectively. The four-part drama is written by Rob Williams (DCI Banks, Holby City), directed by Christopher Menaul (The Suspicions of Mr Whicher) and Jim O'Hanlon (In the Flesh). Filming begins soon for two months. [via ITV Press]

I quite liked BBC3's sitcom CUCKOO, but now that SNL's Andy Samberg has a major US hit with Brooklyn Nine-Nine, I had presumed making more wasn't an option. However, it seems the BBC have found a workaround: they're writing out Samberg's hippie character (the titular Cuckoo) and series 2 will involve another American boyfriend for Greg Davies and Helen Baxendale's middle-class parents to contend with. And who will be playing daughter Tamla Kari's new beau? None other than shirt-phobic Twilight hunk Taylor Lautner! That's crazy casting and quite a coup for the BBC. But while teenage fans of Lautner's chiseled abs will likely give ratings a significant boost (and perhaps ensure more US buzz), I'm unconvinced by Lautner's skills as a comic actor. Samberg was a much better proposition for a family sitcom, and a big part of why I enjoyed series 1 was his unexpected chemistry with Davies (which had a kind of Meet the Parents vibe). I also wonder if Cuckoo's new format will stick, with a new US actor brought into the show every year. That could be fun. [via BBC Press]